5 Prospect Road, Glasnevin

The Brian Boru is on the road to Glasnevin Cemetery, and has long been a popular stop for funeral corteges, serving as a kind of decompression chamber between the grief of the bunal and the return home to Dublin. James Joyce records the route of such a procession in Ulysses, and Brendan Behan records a marvellous cameo of two drunks in the famous cemetery.

They asked for Mulcahy of the Coombe and were told where he was buried. After traipsing through the fog, they found the grave, sure enough. One of the drunks spelt out the name: Terrence Mulcahy. The other drunk was blinking up at the statue of Our Saviour the widow had put up. "Not a bloody bit like the man," says he, "That's not Mulcahy," says he, "whoever done it."

But people don't flock to The Brian Boru, or Hedigan's as it is more commonly known, simply to drown their sorrows. It is one of the most famous of Dublin's northside pubs, hugely popular with the residents of the neighbourhood and with the crowds from Dalymount Park, as well as with the passing trade. Lots of local wit and banter here, in a house well run and with a long tradition of top class refreshments and comfort. There's a beautiful conservatory and garden in the back, and you can drive there secure in the knowledge that there's plenty of room for your car in the spacious car park.

Drop in to Brian Boru House / Hedigan's at 5 Prospect Road, Glasnevin, Dublin.

From the Appletree Press title: The Irish Pub Guide.
Also from Appletree: Irish Pub Songs.